Good Words for Today
We pray not to be made rich, but to know our riches in Christ. We pray not for comfort, but to know more of your strength. We pray not for an easy road, but for grace to walk the Calvary road. We do not ask for the world’s applause, but for courage to walk pleasing in your sight. We do not ask for rest, but for more determination to do your work in the world.
“Grace and peace be yours in abundance” (1 Peter 1:2). Some translations say, “May grace and peace be multiplied to you.” His prayer is, “May you have more and more of God’s grace and God’s peace.” This is our compensation for being strangers in the world. There are no limits on God’s grace or God’s peace. We can never come to the end of either one.
"I heard about His healing, Of His cleansing pow'r revealing. How He made the lame to walk again And caused the blind to see; And then I cried, "Dear Jesus, Come and heal my broken spirit," And somehow Jesus came and bro't To me the victory." From "Victory in Jesus" by Eugene Bartlett, 1939.
Salvation doesn’t start with me; it starts with God’s work in me. I didn’t choose him; he chose me. God always makes the first move, and if he didn’t make the first move, I wouldn’t make any move at all. Write it down in big letters: Salvation is of the Lord—first, last and always.
"It is commendable if someone bears up under the pain of unjust suffering because they are conscious of God" (1 Peter 2:19). Do you believe God has you where you are for a purpose—even if you can’t see what that purpose is? If you answer yes, then you will endure suffering even though it is painful and frustrating. If you answer no, then you will almost certainly try to bail out of your situation and you will probably become bitter and angry in the process. We are not angry with the world simply because we do not flourish in it. We are not unhappy that others have it easier than we do. We are not sullen when we are mistreated. Why? Because we are conscious of God. Your suffering is not about you. It’s about God. Learn that truth and it will transform your life.
"Lord, I am not trying to make my way to your height, for my understanding is in no way equal to that, but I do desire to understand a little of your truth which my heart already believes and loves. I do not seek to understand so that I may believe, but I believe so that I may understand; and what is more, I believe that unless I do believe I shall not understand." A prayer of Anselm of Canterbury, ca. 1093. See more at: http://kathwilliamson.blogspot.com/2009/06/famous-prayers-prayer-of-anselm.html#sthash.TM0I779a.dpuf
"The dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are still alive will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air" (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17). Sometimes people say that nothing is as certain as death and taxes. But I know one thing more sure than that: Some Christians will never die. One generation—the final one—will be living when Christ returns, and that generation of Christians will never taste death but will be caught up to meet the Lord in the air. Are you ready?
We must pray for the lost that God will open their eyes, give life in place of death, enable them to hear, create within them a desire to understand, give them a hunger for Jesus, and then grant them faith to believe the gospel. In short, as we prepare to share Christ with others, we must fervently pray that God will go before us. When we pray for the lost, we are saying to God, “You go first! If you don’t go first, all our efforts will be in vain.”
"Sweet hour of prayer! sweet hour of prayer! Thy wings shall my petition bear To Him whose truth and faithfulness Engage the waiting soul to bless. And since He bids me seek His face, Believe His Word and trust His grace, I’ll cast on Him my every care, And wait for thee, sweet hour of prayer!" From "Sweet Hour of Prayer" by William W. Walford, 1845
"We have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will" (Colossians 1:9). When we want what God wants, when we surrender our will and our agenda, when his purposes become our purposes, then our lives will be dramatically changed, and we will find purpose and meaning in everything that happens to us. Life becomes an adventure with God every day. When that happens, our lives become joyful, visibly different, and eternally significant. Do you want what God wants, or are you still trying to do it your way?
This is how Jesus builds our faith: Over and over again he puts us in positions where we are helpless, and then he says, “Do something!” In our desperation we cry out to heaven, “How?” and he replies, “I’m glad you asked.” It’s not that Jesus wants us to fail, but he does want us to know that without him we can do nothing. Our success depends totally upon him, and the sooner we learn that, the happier we will be.
Direction makes all the difference. I would rather be one foot away from hell heading toward heaven than one foot away from heaven heading toward hell.
If you are a Christian, your life has two parts—B.C. and A.D.—Before Christ and After Deliverance. You've gone from B.C. to A.D. Why would you want to live back in B.C.? You don't belong in that life anymore.
The story is told of an old Spartan who tried in vain to make a corpse stand upright. But after failing time and again, he declared, “It wants something within.” How true for all of us. That is what we all want – we want something within. We want a power that can break the chains of sin. We want a power that can enable us to stand upright, to run and not be weary, to walk and not faint. Where can we find such a power within? Only in the cross of Christ.
"With the world on the brink of pandemonium, it is our responsibility to point people -no matter their heritage, ethnicity or religion – to the one and only solution, Jesus Christ." Jerry Falwell
What will you boast about when you stand before the Lord? Your job . . . a big bank account . . . a new house . . . all the important people you know? Do you think that will impress the Lord Jesus Christ? I don’t think so. In that day the only thing that will matter is the people you brought with you to heaven. Everything else will fade away.
In this life there are many roads a person may travel, but only one that leads to heaven. The road to heaven starts at Calvary. Just keep walking in the blood-stained path of the crucified Savior and that road will take you safely home at last.
"Before the hills in order stood, or earth received her frame, from everlasting thou art God, to endless years the same." From "O God, Our Help in Ages Past" by Isaac Watts, 1719.
In the late 1920s Christians in China faced intense persecution. Twelve China Inland Mission workers had been killed and many others had been withdrawn from their stations for their own safety. An urgent call went out for 200 new workers to come to China to help spread the gospel. In 1931 missionary Frank Houghton penned a hymn called "Facing a Task Unfinished" in support of that appeal. The goal was reached by the end of that year. Here is the first verse of the hymn: Facing a task unfinished That drives us to our knees A need that, undiminished Rebukes our slothful ease We, who rejoice to know Thee Renew before Thy throne The solemn pledge we owe Thee To go and make Thee known Keith and Kristyn Getty recently recorded a new version of this hymn. On this Sunday, February 21, 2016, thousands of churches will sing "Facing a Task Unfinished" as part of a global movement to reach the world with the gospel of Jesus. I hope you'll take a few moments to watch the video and learn the words to this powerful missionary hymn.
Spirit of God, fill us with Your power so that we may speak when we need to speak and be silent when nothing more needs to be said. Amen.
Once upon a time, a turtle wanted to spend the winter in Florida but he knew he could never walk that far. He convinced a couple of geese to help him, each taking one end of a piece of rope, while he clamped his vise-like jaws in the center. The flight went fine until someone on the ground looked up in admiration and asked, “Who in the world thought of that?” Unable to resist the chance to take credit, the turtle opened his mouth to shout, “I did—” Sometimes it’s a good idea to keep your mouth shut.
What does the church need? The answer is clear. The church needs the Bible. What should pastors be preaching? Pastors should preach the Bible. What should elders be teaching? They should teach the Bible. What should church members be studying? Let them study the Bible. When we are doing what God has commanded, every church will truly be a “Bible church” and every Christian will be a “Bible Christian.” This is what we need, this is what we must have, this is the basis for all that we do and all that we say. Apart from God’s Word, we have nothing to offer to a hurting world.
"Love does not envy" (1 Corinthians 13:4). If you live long enough, you’ll probably find someone who does what you do better than you can do it. You’ll meet people with your talents and your gifts—only much more of them. You’ll find people who surpass you in every way. What will you do then? This is one test of love. And if you live long enough, you are certain to encounter people who are less talented and less gifted than you in every way, yet they seem to catch all the breaks and end up ahead of you in the great game of life. True love is generous. Can you love even when you seem to be losing? To paraphrase Amy Carmichael, if I love only when I am winning, I know nothing of Calvary love.
"God assumed from the beginning that the wise of the world would view Christians as fools...and He has not been disappointed....If I have brought any message today, it is this: Have the courage to have your wisdom regarded as stupidity. Be fools for Christ. And have the courage to suffer the contempt of the sophisticated world." Justice Antonin Scalia
“If I were to try to read, much less answer, all the attacks made on me, this shop might as well be closed for any other business. I do the very best I know how - the very best I can; and I mean to keep doing so until the end. If the end brings me out all right, what's said against me won't amount to anything. If the end brings me out wrong, ten angels swearing I was right would make no difference.” Abraham Lincoln
"We are one in the Spirit, we are one in the Lord We are one in the Spirit, we are one in the Lord And we pray that all unity may one day be restored And they'll know we are Christians by our love, by our love Yes, they'll know we are Christians by our love." Peter Sholtes, 1968
In one of his news reports, Paul Harvey told about a man named Carl Coleman who was driving to work when a woman motorist, passing too close, snagged his fender with hers. Both cars stopped. The young woman surveying the damage was in tears. It was her fault, she admitted. But it was a new car—less than two days from the showroom. How was she ever going to face her husband? Mr. Coleman was sympathetic but explained they must note each other’s license number and automobile registration. The woman reached into the glove compartment of her car to retrieve the documents in an envelope. And on the first paper to tumble out, in a heavy masculine scrawl, were these words: “In case of accident, remember, Honey, it’s you I love, not the car.”
"Trust your neighbors, but brand your cattle." A Texas rancher told me that the other day. Wise advice for all of us.
"The wicked . . . are like chaff that the wind drives away" (Psalm 1:4). When the time for judgment comes, the wicked will not stand because they have no roots. Everything about them is blow and show, froth and worldly pomp, bluster and brag, and ego. But there is nothing of lasting value. With one breath, the Lord will blow all the wicked into hell. Meanwhile, the righteous will stand because they are like trees by the stream, with deep roots in the Word of God. The tree stands, the chaff disappears. That’s why sinners won’t be in the assembly of the righteous. They won’t be there because the winds of judgment will already have removed them.
"We get knocked down, but we are not destroyed" (2 Corinthians 4:9). In this world we may face disappointment, sorrow, rejection, failure, sickness, abandonment, and discouragement. We may hear things about our children we prayed to God never to hear, our dearest friends may desert us, our spouse may leave us, and we may face an unremitting series of earthly tragedies. Illness, physical weakness, and death itself may visit our door time and again. Even then, we prosper, we thrive, we survive, we are not destroyed. Sometimes when I ask friends going through hard times how they are doing, the answer comes back, “I’m surviving.” Years ago I foolishly thought that was a wimpy response. Now I see that it is a powerful statement of faith in God. Sometimes surviving is the same as thriving. Some days to survive is our greatest victory.
"It is not the absence of sin that makes you a believer. It is the presence of Christ in the midst of your struggle that commends the believer and sets you apart in the world." Rosaria Champagne Butterfield
How do you know when a tree has good roots? Answer: When the storms come. All the trees look pretty much alike when the sun is shining or a gentle rain is falling, but let a mighty storm with fierce rain and howling winds pass through. Then the true difference is apparent. The trees with few roots are blown over, but the trees with deep roots are still standing when the storm has passed. So it is for the child of God. You won’t know how good your root system is until the storms of life crash against you. Only then will you discover the strength of your spiritual foundation. The only way to be ready for the storm is to spend time now delighting in God’s Word day by day, meditating on its truth, and building a foundation deep and strong for whatever may come your way.
"His delight is in the law of the Lord" (Psalm 1:3). Your “delight” determines your direction. Are you eager to hear God's Word today?
Lord, give me the wisdom to know when to take action and the courage to wait until the time is right. Amen.
A hundred years ago our evangelical ancestors gave us the proper formula. They said we are to be “in the world but not of the world.” That means we are to live among the lost, loving them, befriending them, caring for them, and at the same time we are to live by an entirely different value system. That powerful combination of truth backed up by love is an irresistible force in the world. We can’t reach people by lowering our standards or compromising our values. It’s a good thing when the boat is in the water; it’s a bad thing when the water is in the boat.
“The Christian has no right to despair because despair is a sin. The Christian has no reason to despair because Christ has risen.” Richard John Neuhaus
"Give of thine own to bear the message glorious; Give of thy wealth to speed them on their way; Pour out thy soul for them in prayer victorious; And all thou spendest Jesus will repay. Publish glad tidings, tidings of peace, Tidings of Jesus, redemption and release." From the hymn, "O Zion, Haste" by Mary Thompson, 1868.
You do not win the lost by living like the lost. You win the lost by loving the lost and living like the saved.
Christ is now in heaven praying for us. What a marvelous thought this is—and what a balm for troubled souls. When I am down in the dumps, Jesus prays for me. When I falter under the load, Jesus prays for me. When my faith gives way, Jesus prays for me. When I fight a losing battle against temptation, Jesus prays for me. There’s even more than that. Often when I am asked to pray for someone, I can’t seem to find the appropriate words, and I feel as if my prayers are in vain. But Jesus in heaven comes alongside me, takes my pitiful prayers, and transforms them into powerful petitions before the throne of God, as does the Holy Spirit (Romans 8:26-27). When I can’t pray, when the words won’t come, Jesus prays for me.
"Jesus said, 'I am the resurrection and the life . . . Do you believe this?' (John 11:25-26). This is a canyon question which makes sense only during an all-night vigil or in the stillness of smoke-filled waiting rooms. A question that makes sense when all of our props, crutches, and costumes are taken away. For then we must face ourselves as we really are: rudderless humans tailspinning toward disaster. And we are forced to see him for what he claims to be: our only hope." Max Lucado